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2008 CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES RAISE $239 MILLION IN FIRST HALF OF 2007

WASHINGTON – 2008 candidates for the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives reported raising a total of $239 million from January 1 through June 30, 2007, according to data compiled by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Candidates seeking election to the 33 U.S. Senate reported raising $80.6 million during the first six months of 2007. Democratic Senate candidates raised $47.6 million while Republicans raised $33 million. Candidates for the House of Representatives reported raising $157.8 million in the first six months of this year, with Democrats raising $94.2 million and Republicans raising $63.6 million.

U.S. Senate

Fundraising totals for the 59 individual Senate campaigns in 2007 are similar to the same period in 2005, when receipts totaled $84.8 million.In 2001, when this same group of 33 Senate seats was last up for election, 56 candidates raised $43 million during the first six months of that year.

From January 1 through June 30, 2007, contributions from individuals to Senate candidates accounted for $45.7 million, or 57% of the total raised.Political action committee (PAC) contributions to Senate candidates totaled $17.9 million, representing 22% of receipts.

Senate candidates ended the first six months of 2007 with $106.8 million cash-on-hand and debts of $6.4 million, some of which were from previous elections.

U.S. House of Representatives

Campaign finance reports filed by House candidates for the period January 1 through June 30, 2007, show 427 House incumbents reporting receipts of $135.5 million, a $22.3 million (or 16.3%) increase from the same period in 2005. Individuals contributed $65.1 million to House incumbents, while PAC contributions totaled $65.6 million, in the first half of 2007. From January 1 through June 30 of this year, 228 incumbent Democrats raised $80.3 million, while 199 incumbent Republicans raising $55.2 million. Democratic members reported $122.4 million cash-on-hand at the end of the reporting period, and Republicans reported $94.4 million.

The median receipt value for Democratic House incumbents was $262,521, up from $188,745 in the first six months of 2005. For Republican members, the median this year was $241,027, down from $245,137 in 2005. (An equal number of candidates had receipts above and below these median values.)

Receipts for the 43 Democratic House freshmen totaled $22 million, while the 16 Republican freshmen reported receipts of $5 million.Democratic freshmen had median receipts of $499,360, while the median for Republican freshmen was $218,760.

Non-incumbents raised a total of $22.3 million for House races during the first six months of 2007, with 119 Democrats raising $13.9 million and 78 Republicans raising $8.4 million.In the same period in 2005, 79 Democrats raised $6.8 million and 60 Republicans raised $7.5 million.

Included in the following tables are fund raising totals for the top 50 House members in the following categories:total receipts, contributions from individuals, PAC contributions, disbursements, and cash on hand.Comparative charts and graphs are also included, along with summary statistical information for each Senate candidate.Financial activity for these Senate candidates in 2003-2004 and 2005-2006 is also included.

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency that administers and enforces federal campaign finance laws. The FEC has jurisdiction over the financing of campaigns for the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate, the Presidency and the Vice Presidency. Established in 1975, the FEC is composed of six Commissioners who are nominated by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.